Ex-convict accused of trying to kidnap Iowa woman, as suspect's mom found dead

EARLY, Iowa – A prosecutor says the woman found dead in a western Iowa farmhouse during a kidnapping investigation is the kidnapping suspect's mother.

Sac County Attorney Ben Smith said Friday that 21-year-old Kirk Riley Levin's mother, Marilyn Schmitt, was the woman found dead in the farmhouse in Early, 100 miles northwest of Des Moines.

Sheriff Ken McClure says a 21-year-old woman told investigators that Levin assaulted her and told her he was kidnapping her after showing up at her home Thursday morning asking for a ride to the house. He says she managed to get away and get help from a local resident.

Levin was released from prison Tuesday after serving more than two years for burglary. Investigators found him hiding in a barn Thursday and arrested him.